For the Want of a Nail
by Overhaul
Summary: Sometimes the smallest change can have the largest consequences. A simple slip of the hand sends events spinning out of control, and Zero learns that redemption may not be as unattainable as it seems. Warnings: Character death, spoilers
1. Slip of the Hand

**Author's Notes:** Well, this is the first fanfic I'll be posting. I hope you all enjoy it. This fic starts in episode 18 during Suzaku's knighthood celebration at Ashford Academy, but is AU after that point. This is not for massive Suzaku fans.

**Title:** For the Want of a Nail

**Summary:** Sometimes the smallest change can have the largest consequences. A simple slip of the hand sends events spinning out of control, and Zero learns that redemption may not be as unattainable as it seems. Warnings: Character death, spoilers

**Pairing(s):** Lelouch/Kallen, but it will probably take a long time to get there.

* * *

**Chapter 1:** A Slip of the Hand

"I declare the celebratory party for Student Council Treasurer Kururugi Suzaku's promotion to knighthood open!" Rivalz's announcement was met with cheers and soon the party was under way, as everyone began helping themselves to food and drink

Lelouch Lamperouge frowned as he surveyed the party-goers, milling about the expanse of the student council room, for once glad that C.C wasn't with him. He knew that if she knew of the sheer quantity of pizza was available, she'd be on it, regardless of blowing their cover. It was funny how one so seemingly wise and mature could be so childish at times.

Pulling himself lazily out of his musings, he watched trying to seem detached as a large group of students crowded around Suzaku. They were cheering and laughing; a part of Lelouch urged him to go and join in with them, celebrating his friend's knighthood. Only recently, he would have been there with the rest, congratulating him like any good friend should.

That time felt like it was a lifetime ago.

As much as Lelouch wanted to, however, cold logic dictated otherwise. Kururugi Suzaku was, as of that day, the enemy. Lelouch always knew that his friend was a britannian soldier, but he had maintained the realistic hope that they would not meet in battle. His hopes had been crushed when he had found out the truth. The "White Knight" had been his mortal enemy since day one, and unless something was done, he would continue to be an unnecessarily large obstacle.

The Black Knights were divided in their oppinion. When the senior members of the Order had met, Diethard had suggested assassinating Suzaku and letting that be it. Ougi and Toudou, however, had been firmly against the idea, saying that they would lose support if they started using such tactics. It seemed odd, that the member of the Order largely responsible for their publicity would suggest such a potentially publicly disastrous solution. While he had told them that the plan was not to ahead, he was worried that the britannian man, who even more set in his beliefs than most of the Elevens in the order, would try to go over his head.

And what of Kallen? She was a good friend of Suzaku, at least as far as Lelouch could tell, and he was as good at reading people as they came. How would she be reacting to all this? He had to admit that she was invaluable to the Black Knights, as their best pilot and his own personal guard. She was dedicated to him, or rather his Zero persona, but was a good person at heart. Despite this, he had no doubt that if she believed that she was helping the Black Knights and, more importantly, Zero, she would do it.

Knowing that he would have to keep an eye on her, he quickly caught sight if her, her strawberry hair in stark contrast to the rest of the crowd. Lelouch gave her a once over, and his eyes widened as he saw what was happening. She was striding purposefully, so different from the mild image she normally wore when not on duty. She was headed in Suzaku's direction, and Lelouch's eyes widened as he recognised the purse in her hand as the one she concealed her knife in.

_'Well,'_ he thought, _'That answers the question of where she stands on the assassination idea.'_ He cursed his sense of humour for playing up at the most inopportune time. He quickly focused himself. He made to follow her through the crowd, managing to catch up with her deliberate pace.

_'What is she thinking?' _Lelouch thought furiously. _'She's in plain sight. If she attacks him here, she'll be caught for sure! There's even those two from the britannian military here. Still, that kind of loyalty is something else.' _Lelouch redirected his thoughts. He knew he couldn't say anything to her without blowing both of their covers. He drew level with her when she was mere feet away from Suzaku. He made to grab the hand which held her purse, the tell-tale glint of a blade already poking through the pale pink fabric.

Unfortunately, just as he made the lunge for her arm, Kallen pulled her arm away. This action caused him to lose his balance, sending both of them to the ground, and knocking a glass bottle that was stood on a table nearby to the floor with a crash.

Lelouch had never been known for his strength, and he found himself cursing his frailty as he was disoriented by a fierce blow to the head from the hard tiles of the floor. He couldn't gather his thoughts, as all that that occupied his head was a painful throbbing. He could just make out a voice saying his name over the blood pounding in his ears.

"-lu! Lulu!" He recognised Millay's voice, and sure enough, her face swam into view as she helped him up. A look of concern was in place of her usual grin, and Lelouch wasn't sure if he should be feeling touched or insulted. He shook his head almost violently; this definitely wasn't the time to worry about his admittedly large ego. He did a quick scan of the room, and his blood ran cold as he realised that neither Kallen nor Suzaku were in sight.

"Lulu, what-" Millay began, but was cut off by Lelouch.

"Where's Kallen?" he asked quickly, still searching for her. When he saw Millay's frown transform into a sly grin, he realised how he'd sounded.

"Well," she spoke slowly, and Lelouch could tell she was teasing him, "if you've _really _gotta know, she's headed towards the infirmary. I think she cut herself on that broken glass, but I'm not sure. She was out of here pretty quick. I think Suzaku's taking her there."

Lelouch was off before she'd even finished. As he practically sprinted towards the exit of the council room, he heard Millay's call float after him, "Off to kiss it better, Lulu?"

Even as he ran, he snorted. _'Kiss it better?'_ he thought derisively, _'At this moment, I'd sooner kill her.'_

* * *

Kallen smirked to herself as she walked side by side with Suzaku down one of the academy's halls. In the small scale din Lelouch had caused it had been easy to slip away. She had cut her hand on the broken glass, and it had been far too easy to convince Suzaku to take her to the infirmary to get her hand treated, while Millay unknowingly kept Lelouch busy.

_'I've really gotta hand it too him,' _she thought, _'Even if he doesn't realise it, he really saved my skin back there. Still, what was he doing? Was he trying to stop me? He must have recognised the purse.' _She was pulled out of her thoughts as she heard her companion say her name.

"Kallen?" Suzaku asked, worry playing across his handsome features, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'll be fine," she assured him, and she let herself smile despite herself, "it's just my hand still hurts." She indicated the lightly bleeding cut on her hand and Suzaku nodded in understanding.

_'It's a pity really,' _she mused, _'you're a good person Suzaku, but if I have to choose between you and Zero, it's Zero every time.'_ Her face hardened. And she gripped the purse that contained her knife, and the blade extended, cutting through the fabric with a slight tearing sound.

"Kallen, what...?" Suzaku trailed off as he saw the now visible weapon in her hand.

Kallen struck. Suzaku's eyes widened as he felt the cold metal of the blade sliding in between his ribs. Kallen could see the look of shock in his eyes, even as he fought against the pain. Warm blood began spreading through his shirt from where the knife was still held there by Kallen.

Kallen watched as, seemingly in slow motion, Suzaku fell to his knees, gasping in pain as the knife left his chest with he sickening sound of tearing flesh. His breath was coming hard, and Kallen could tell that she'd punctured a lung. The knife was trembling in her hand, even as she moved behind him, pressing the blood-stained weapon against her victim's throat.

Suzaku sounded like he was trying to speak, but with a punctured lung it was all he could do to breathe. _'This is for Zero, Kallen,' _and with that thought, she stilled her hand enough to bring the blade cleanly across hiss throat.

She stared in morbid fascination as he fell to the floor, face first. She gripped his shoulder and turned him over, and lifeless eyes stared back at her.

* * *

And so Kururugi Suzaku fell, neither to thousands off enemies against impossible odds on the battlefield, nor of old age in the arms of a loved one. No, he was betrayed and killed by someone he considered a friend, alone save for one girl, still clutching the murder weapon in her bloody hands.

* * *

AN: So, how was it for my first fic? Whether or not you liked it, please drop a review.

Thanks go to Sadistic Lunatic, who inspired me to write fanfiction.

I'm also working on a Full Metal Panic fic at the moment, but I'll try to alternate my updates once I post it, so I don't end up abandoning either.


	2. Alarm Bells

**Author's Notes:** Thanks to my reviewers, you're the best. I must say that I was expecting to get at least one bad review just for what I've posted so far, so your support is much appreciated.

**Disclaimer: **I forgot this last chapter... oops. Ah well, I don't own the masterpiece which is Code Geass. It belongs to Sunrise.

* * *

**Chapter 2:** Alarm Bells

Kallen stared at what she'd done, a demented mix of growing pride and horror fighting for dominance in her mind. Her face was white and her hands were once again trembling, but deep down she knew that she would have done the same thing again. She felt as if she'd passed some sort of test, but at the same time, failed another.

_'Will Zero be proud,' _she thought absently to herself, _'or will he be mortified?' _She frowned when she realised that she had no idea either way. Diethard had said that killing Suzaku would benefit Zero and the black knights, but she simply didn't know enough about their enigmatic leader to even have an inkling of what he thought.

_'What about the others?' _she continued, and she felt tears come to her eyes as she realised she already knew the answer. Suzaku was a good friend to so many. Lelouch, Shirley, Rivalz and Millay would all be devastated when they heard about Suzaku, and if they ever found out that she had done it... _'Don't even think about that,' _she chastised herself, _'they're not going to find out.'_

Her thoughts halted there. She knew that this wasn't just going to work itself out; she'd lost that sort of idealism after witnessing the goings on of Area 11, or Japan, as she still adamantly considered it. No, she'd need a plan of action, and fast. She was on her own here, a Black Knight in a school full of Britannians. She had no back-up, and there would be no Zero to save the day this time. It was just her, her knife and her well honed acting skills.

Knowing that she had some of time before she would be expected back, she began preparing a plan of action. Taking one last glance at Suzaku's lifeless body, she said out loud to herself, "Zero, if you're listening, you'd better appreciate this."

Just around the corner of the hallway stood a raven haired, violet eyed student, trying to control a bitter laugh at the sheer irony of the situation.

* * *

Lelouch Lamperouge, while not much of a "hands on" person, was proud to claim that he was not easily disturbed. However, the current situation was rapidly testing that self-assessment. He could only stare in shock as Suzaku lay bleeding out on the floor. He was barely able to gather the presence of mind to duck back /around the corner. This was just as well for him. He had no doubt that if Kallen had seen him then, she would have turned the knife on him in an instant.

Even as his eyes left the scene, it felt as though it was burned into his retinas. A part of him seemed to be in denial. While Lelouch was rightly considered the smarter of the two friends, it was Suzaku who was well known as the more capable of the two. When they were younger, Lelouch had seen Suzaku come out from numerous scrapes unharmed, and bounce back undeterred from just about anything as if it were were nothing.

But this time there was no bouncing back. Suzaku wasn't about to jump up like it was nothing, he wasn't going to joke amusedly about how that had been a close one, and they wouldn't laugh together about it later. Because there was nothing to laugh about, it wasn't nothing, and as tough as Suzaku was, there would be no bouncing back from death.

These thoughts left Lelouch felling numb. It was as if his mind, which he had relied on so much in the past, was simply refusing to respond, instead opting to let conflicting thoughts run rampant in his head. Kallen had done in a matter of minutes what he would never have been able to in a lifetime.

_'But did Suzaku have to die?' _The words echoed in his head, as they did he loathed himself for such idealism. This was a war, and, as in all wars, he knew people would die. This wasn't even the first time it had hit so close to home, with Shirley having lost her father, along with hundreds, of other innocents

_'That was Kallen's doing as well,' _he thought bitterly, remembering the landslide her Knightmare Frame had caused, before sighing. She was an incredible asset to the Black Knights, easily their best pilot, and never afraid to do what was needed. But people just seemed to drop dead around her, civilians and soldiers alike swept away in the heat of battle. It was almost as if she were a curse.

Lelouch's mind finally seemed to catch up with the situation, and he realised the need for a plan, and quickly. Kallen would likely reveal that Suzaku had been killed, to divert the attention from herself. If she didn't, she would be instantly pounced upon as a suspect, as she was the last person seemed with him. Lelouch figured she could pull it off, her acting skills having kept her second life a secret as she hid in plain sight.

Still, Lelouch wondered how long it would be until the truth came to light. He knew that at some point both he and Kallen would have to disappear. But how long would it be before that happened. Months? Unlikely. Hours? Probably not unless Kallen messed up, which he was confident she wouldn't. Days? That sounded about right. Everyone at the party would be investigated, and he could only imagine how quickly the name 'Lelouch Lamperouge' would send off alarm bells once the royal family got involved.

That would have to wait, however. He would probably have at least a day before everything came down around his ears, but if he didn't do something now, all his planning would become academic, as he would almost definitely end up executed. He knew that not returning to the party wasn't an option, as he would be under instant suspicion. Returning after Kallen did would be eve worse, as everyone would be on guard and he'd be pounced on in an instant.

With only one option left, he began making his way swiftly away from the dreadful scene behind him, back towards the party room. As he re-entered, the noise hit his ears like a physical blow compared to the silence of the hall as he observed Kallen. The party was still in full swing, and Lelouch found himself once again watching the party goers from the edge of the room. He felt sick to his stomach at the cheerful looks on all their faces.

As he looked around, he saw Millay and Rivalz still talking amicably where Suzaku had left them earlier, completely oblivious to the situation their friend was in, and Shirley, who was working hard as ever, showing no outward signs that she had recently lost her father. As he continued to watch, the only thought in his head was _'How many more will it take?'_

And at that single moment in time, Lelouch could not help but both hate and pity the girl who had killed so many.

His thoughts were interrupted when the room quietened, and he saw a tall man with white hair who wore a lab coat enter the hall, and Lelouch knew there would only be one reason for a stranger to come to Suzaku's party. He must have been with the military.

He shifted his mentality in an instant. Lelouch suppressed his schoolboy self, leaving only the cold, calculating leader feared throughout Area 11. On the outside he was still Lelouch, but on the inside, he had never felt more like Zero as the gears in his head began to click.

* * *

Lloyd entered the Student Council's main hall, where the party was still taking place. He scanned the room, and was surprised to see that Suzaku didn't appear to be among the guests. He reckoned that the boy hadn't gone very far, but also knew that they needed to be going, as Princess Euphemia required an escort for her meeting with this mysterious VIP from the mainland. Spotting Millay Ashford, the only familiar face amongst the strangers, he quickly walked over.

Millay spotted him as he approached and waved him over. "Lloyd," she greeted with a polite smile, "Did you need something?"

"You know him, Millay?" asked Nina, who was accompanying Lloyd.

At this question, Millay blushed slightly and awkwardly refused to meet anyone's eyes, mumbling something unintelligible. Lloyd, however, simply smiled broadly and announced, "We're engaged," as if such an arrangement was an everyday occurrence. This was not a view the rest of the party goers seemed to share however, and the everyone in the room, who had quietened at the arrival of this new guest, instantly descended into anarchy.

Millay became even more embarrassed, as every eye in the hall seemed to be staring at either her or Lloyd.

"What?" cried a voice that carried over the rest of the pandemonium. A blue haired boy who Lloyd didn't know came dashed up to the pair and began rapidly questioning Lloyd. The count in question simply frowned as the boy ranted and raved. Normally he would have found such antics amusing, but Suzaku hadn't yet shown up, and he was starting to worry that they would be late.

"If you'd excuse me," he cut through, impatience giving his normally mild tone a slight bite, "I have business to attend to." He turned away from the boy, who was currently imitating a goldfish, and proceeded to question Millay. "Have you seen Suzaku?" he asked, "only we've been mobilised and we need to get going as soon as possible."

"Sorry," Millay replied, slowly recovering from her early embarrassment, "Someone went to look for him earlier. But he hasn't come back yet... wait scratch that." She turned to the dark haired boy who had just joined them. "Hey," she exclaimed, "we were just talking about you. Any luck finding Kallen and Suzaku?"

The boy shook his head. "No, I haven't." Suddenly he looked curious, "What's wrong, has something happened."

"I'm afraid so," Lloyd replied solemnly, "I hate to take away your guest of honour, but duty calls. It will be his first mission as a knight, and it would look awfully bad if he were to miss it."

For a moment Lloyd thought that the stranger seemed slightly down, but it cleared so quickly that he assumed he must have imagined it. _'After all,' _he thought, _'who could be down on a day like this.'_

The boy addressed Lloyd again. "I know Suzaku quite well, so I could find him quickly if you want me to take a message."

"A wonderful idea," Lloyd said with a smile, "Just tell him that we've been mobilised, and there's transport for him, Euphemia and the Lancelot in the harbour. You'd best be on your way Mr..."

"Lelouch Lamperouge," was all the boy said before leaving hastily. Lloyd was so dumbstruck that he didn't even try to stop him.

"Lamperouge..." he murmured to himself. He turned to Millay, "He did say Lamperouge? As in Lady Marianne Lamperouge?"

Millay never had time to reply, as suddenly the doors burst open and a white faced girl with strawberry coloured hair ran into the room. "Millay!" she gasped out as she ran over. She looked like she had run all the way there. "It's Suzaku, he-" she choked. Lloyd was gripped with worry.

"What is it Kallen?" Millay asked, "what's happened?"

Lloyd was on the verge of trying to shake the information out of the girl. He would have if she didn't already look like she was about to fall apart on her own.

"Suzaku," she whispered, and Lloyd found himself leaning in to hear better. "He's been murdered."

* * *

Kallen watched the effect the words had on the crowd with horrified intrigue. Silence spread slowly throughout the large hall like some kind of deadly disease. She watched as whispers darted back and forth as confused frowns were exchanged for masks of horror.

Unlike before, she felt strangely apathetic. She was still trembling but it now felt like part of the act as opposed to her true reaction. She quickly reminded herself that if she slipped here she would be finished. She tried to discretely gauge Millay's reaction more closely. Her face was chalk white and her eyes were wide in shock, but what stood out most was pity. Kallen had to force herself not to get angry. If there was one thing she hated, t was pity. It made her feel sickeningly weak, like she couldn't achieve anything.

She had them fooled, but she knew she wouldn't be able to keep this up for long. Showing up now seemed like it had been a bad idea; she would have to get out of there soon. "Millay," she said in her best trembling voice, hating how she sounded, "I want to go home." _'So I can st__op this stupid fa__çade before I make myself feel ill.'_

Millay nodded numbly, evidently the shock was still setting in. "We all should."

Seeing that that was all the response she would get, she made to head off, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. She spun around, this time genuinely frightened when she saw the cross of anger and anguish on Lloyd's face.

"Where-," he gulped and tried again, "Where is he?"

"In the corridor by the infirmary," she replied in a murmur, "Please, I don't want to see it- him again."

Lloyd simply motioned for her to go, nodding gravely as she passed. She tried to make herself as small as possible as she passed everyone, as much as it pained her to do so. The clash of pity, shock, disbelief, sorrow and anger pressed in on her, and she sped up slightly, all the while not making eye contact.

After what felt like an age, she was out of the school. The fresh air filled her lungs, the open space a stark contrast to the oppressive silence of indoors. She relaxed her stance as she realised she was yet to be followed. She quickly left the Academy behind, and was about to turn a corner when she was startled by the ringing of her phone. She pulled the tiny device out of her pocket, and read the name, 'Zero,' on the display. She quickly picked up.

"Receiving," she said shortly.

"I've been watching," came her leader's reply, and as always, Kallen couldn't even begin to guess Zero's mood from his tone.

"Zero, I-" she began but was cut off.

"Report in ASAP," there was a brief pause, "We can discuss your actions later. For now, we have an operation to run."

"I won't let you down," Kallen spoke quietly but determinedly.

"Be there," was all the reply she received before the line went dead.

Kallen carefully put her phone away before heading off in a new direction, determined as always to do her duty. "For Zero," she whispered as she set off at a jog.

* * *

Watching Kallen's retreating figure from a balcony atop the school, Lelouch Lamperouge stood, still as the grave.

"Soon Kallen," he said aloud, "soon you may mourn his death. And when you do, I will be the first to join you. But for now, just do what you do best. Be strong."

* * *

**AN:** Well, I didn't really like this chapter, but it had to be done, and the story will really start to kick off soon. I've got it planned out. Still, I hope this has impressed, and I'm sorry that it's been so slow paced until now.

Until next time,

Overhaul.


	3. Red Lights

**Author's Notes:** Sorry this has taken so long to get out, I'll try and speed up my updates. Just so you know, this chapter isn't going to be pretty. Also, sorry if Lloyd seems OOC here, but given everything going on, I can't really imagine him being his usual self.

* * *

**Chapter 3:** Red Lights

To those who knew him, Count Lloyd was known as a joker. Never serious and completely unflappable. Anyone could tell you that if Lloyd got serious, everything was about to go to Hell, and at that moment, it would be clear to anyone who'd even briefly met him that something was wrong.

Lloyd was sweating. _'Why isn't anyone picking this up?'_ his mind ground out as, once again, he tried to contact Cecile on Princess Euphemia's transport ship. After what seemed like an age, the screen on his laptop crackled to life and the face of his co-worker appeared on screen.

"_What's been keeping you?" _her voice came through a crackle of static, _"You should be here by now, the Princess is going spare. You and Suzaku had better..."_ She trailed off, recognising Lloyd's grave mood. _"Lloyd,"_ she asked uncertainly, _"What's wrong? Did something happen?"_

"Yes," Lloyd spoke, trying to keep his voice under control, "Something's happened, alright. There was an attack at the school." He took a moment to calm himself as his words sunk in. "It was aimed at Suzaku. He-" he gulped. "He was murdered."

Cecile's face on the screen drained of colour. _"Oh my-"_

"That's not all," Lloyd quickly interrupted her, "There was almost definitely a member of the Black Knights there. They'll know where you are by now, you've got to get out of there now. The Princess and the Lancelot, that's too big a target for the Order to ignore."

"_I- I'll tell the captain that we need to set sail." _Cecile paused for a second, _"Lloyd, do you know who did it?" _she asked uncertainly, _"Did you catch them?"_

Lloyd grimaced when she said this. "I think I know who did it, but he got away." He shook his head "We don't have time for this," he said urgently, "I promise, we'll talk later about this, but right now, just get yourself and the Princess to safety."

Cecile said nothing for a moment, clearly trying to for rational thought through the haze of shock. Finally, she seemed able to force her voice out. _"Okay," _she said, breathing deeply to keep her voice steady, _"I'll-"_

She stopped abruptly and left the communicator's field of vision, and the image on the screen began to shake violently, accompanied by a deep, booming rumble. Seconds later, what little Lloyd could see of the room was bathed in red light and the sound of a klaxon could be heard. Cecile's face quickly appeared again, and Lloyd could see that her previous shock was now accompanied by fear.

"_Lloyd, they've found us!" _she said hurriedly, and panic was evident in her voice.

"Take the Princess and run," Lloyd instructed, trying desperately to keep the fear out of his own voice. _'One of us has to be strong,' _he thought. "You've got to get away," he stressed, "I'll call for reinforcements." Cecile just nodded hastily before the screen dissolved into a blur of static, then went black.

Lloyd fell to his knees, gritting his teeth. _'Zero,' _the enraged thought spun through his mind, _'how many lives do you intend to ruin?' _Further thoughts plagued him as he remembered the dark haired boy from the party who had disappeared so quickly. Far too quickly, as if he'd already known what would transpire. _'Lelouch Lamperouge,' _he thought with an uncharacteristic grimace, _'that name, it just can't be a coincidence. Just how are you involved in all this?'_

He cleared his mind. He could focus on these thoughts later. He needed to take action now. He'd already lost Suzaku, who he considered both a comrade and friend. He was going to do everything he could to make sure he didn't lose any more.

* * *

As the ship was rocked by the explosion, Diethard and the constantly-masked Zero observed from the port communications station, standing by a desk in front of a large viewing screen. The staff were held at gunpoint by several black clad, purple visored soldiers.

Diethard began adjusting the equipment on the desk in front of him to transmit on a secure frequency, before opening communications with the Black Knight's submarine. "Did it work?" he asked quickly, almost excitedly, into the mic as he leaned forward.

There was a moment of static before Ougi's voice came through a speaker. _"Affirmative. The engines have been disabled, they're not going anywhere."_

Diethard grinned as he turned to his leader. "Over to you then."

The only acknowledgement he received from the Zero was a nod. Behind the mask, Lelouch Lamperouge was frowning. He still wasn't sure about Diethard. He knew he wanted to see the Black Knights emerge victorious, but he still wasn't sure about the man himself. Lelouch knew that he had condoned Suzaku's assassination, and even suspected that he'd have something to do with it.

All that didn't matter at the moment. He could analyse his men at a later date. For now, he had an operation to run. He reached for the mic, adjusting the transmission frequency to contact all his men. "This is Zero," he spoke clearly, "The target has been disabled. All units report in and confirm battle readiness."

"_Unit Zero, ready," _came Kallen's voice, and Lelouch could practically hear the energy and eagerness contained in that single, unremarkable phrase.

Lelouch Kept half an ear on the speaker as the rest of the units reported in and activated his personal communicator, which was currently plugged into his helmet. "Rakshata," he spoke into it, "are your technicians ready?"

"_We always are, Zero" _the woman's voice insisted, _"You do your part, and we'll do ours."_

"Good," Lelouch replied, "I'm not expecting the Lancelot to be piloted, but I want us to be prepared. We can't guarantee that Kururugi was the only pilot. I'm not taking any chances. Out."

As the last of the Units reported themselves ready, he turned to the man with him. "Diethard," he said with a slight edge to his voice, "I will be taking part in the battle. You are to remain here and observe." He paused for a second before continuing, and there was a definite accusation in his tone this time. "You are to report any abnormalities directly to me. Do not give orders to any of the men without consulting myself first."

Without even waiting for a reply, he returned his attention to the communications equipment on the desk, from which he could hear the last unit reporting in. He took the mic and spoke perfectly clearly into it. "All units, commence main assault."

* * *

Cecile felt numb as she ran towards her destination. The sound of the alarm rang in her ears and everywhere she went was bathed in red light. She could hear voices issuing orders left and right as me armed with guns ran this way and that, preparing to defend the ship. She paid no heed to any of this though, even when she skidded round a corner and almost barrelled into a company of troops coming the other way. She was focused entirely on where she needed to be.

She knew that leaving the ship now would be suicide, so the only option left was to fight. She knew that they had little to no chance of actually winning, but Lloyd had said he'd get reinforcements. They only had to hold out until then.

She finally reached her destination, the knightmare hangar. The boat was small, only containing a handful of knightmare frames. There was a row of blue Sutherlands, and, at the back of the hangar, stood the Lancelot, gleaming white and standing tall.

_'Only it's missing something,' _Cecile thought sadly, her face falling. _'Suzaku...' _Then, her sad frown became a look of grim determination, looking up once again at the white knightmare. She wasn't half the pilot Suzaku had been, but she knew her way around knightmare frames, the Lancelot doubly so.

_'It's been a while,'_ she thought to herself, _'Let's see if I've still got it.' _Then she said aloud, "Lloyd, Suzaku, I'll do you both proud."

* * *

Kallen felt the adrenaline begin to flood through her as the battle started. She could see the array of soldiers that had poured from the ship lining up to fire on her and the others in her unit. Her knightmare frame, the Guren, led the charge. The opposition on the ground were being cut down by fire from her unit. _'Pathetic,' _she thought as she charged headlong into the enemy soldiers, their weapons doing nothing against her knightmare's armour. She charged up her main weapon, and seconds later, the ground troops were being vaporised as she swept through the enemy, the survivors falling quickly into disarray.

It was more of a slaughter than an engagement, but in the heat of battle, all Kallen saw, not people, but monsters. Her hatred for the Britannians drove her as she pulled around for another pass, the Guren's weapon scorching the fleeing soldiers.

As the last of the men were killed, she addressed her unit over the Guren's communicator. "We've got 'em!" she cried, a grin on her face, "Hit the ship before the enemy can counter-attack."

Almost immediately, she heard Zero's voice over on the unit's channel, and Kallen got the feeling that he'd been tuned into Unit Zero from the start. _"Unit Zero," _he addressed sternly, _"by all means take out any defences, but remember that this is not an attack on the ship itself. Avoid as much damage as possible to the superstructure."_

Kallen growled angrily, _'You don't need to lecture me, Zero,' _she thought bitterly, _'If you can't trust me who can you?' _A brief image of a girl with green hair and amber eyes flashed across her mind, but she cleared it. _'This isn't the time, Kallen,' _she scolded herself. She hurriedly replied to Zero, "Roger that," she said respectfully. "You heard him," she addressed her unit, "don't damage the ship, just knock out anything dangerous. The objective is the white knightmare." She could imagine her team-mates rolling their eyes at her; it was common knowledge that Zero had been after that frame since day one.

A hatch on the top of the ship opened and five battle ready Sutherlands emerged. Without hesitation, they all fired their grappling hooks to in the direction of Unit Zero. One knightmare was nailed dead centre, forcing the pilot to eject, leaving only Kallen and three others to fight the attackers. Pulled along by their grappling lines, the Sutherlands flew through the air towards the unit of black knights.

_'No problem,' _Kallen thought with a grin, _'I could take these guys on my own.' _She was in her element. This was what she was meant to do, and she felt more at home in the cockpit of a knightmare frame than in her Britannian stepmother's house. As the first Sutherland reached their position, the Guren's fist slammed into it, crushing the front and sending it sprawling, the pilot only just managing to eject. The second wasn't so lucky, torn apart by bullets as her three comrades opened fire on it at the same time. The last three arrived as one, and Kallen wasted no time in activating the Guren's weapon systems. This time, when she brought the Guren's chrome coloured arm to meet one of the attackers, only a smoking remain was left. The remaining two were quick to get out of the Guren's way and were able to gun down another of her unit.

Kallen saw as the cockpit ejected, only, to crash into a nearby building in a ball of flames. In her anger, she snatched one of the offending frames by the arm and charged the Guren's weapons to full power. In an intense blast of heat and radiation, the Sutherland was completely obliterated, exploding into chunks of molten metal. She was about to finish off the last one, when several grappling lines flew in her direction, and she was forced to pull the Guren back in order to avoid being impaled. She turned to see the source of the disturbance and her eyes widened as she saw the Lancelot flying towards her. The Guren threw itself out of the way just in time to avoid the blade held in the white frame's hands, as she frantically tried to reach Zero on her communicator.

"Zero," she called, "Zero, are you watching this?"

"_Always," _came the static filled reply, and Kallen took a small amount of comfort knowing this, but cursed as she saw the last of her unit get cut down, hopelessly outclassed by the superior frame. Kallen, not sure what to do, was too late to dodge the next attack and had to redirect a sword blow with a blast of energy from the Guren's claw. "Zero," she began, but her commander quickly began to instruct her.

"_Keep it busy,"_ he commanded, _"I want minimum damage to it if possible, but remember: between them and you... I don't think I need to tell you who I'd rather see alive."_

Kallen was so shocked by that comment that she was almost speared by one of the Lancelot's grappling hooks, but it went wide, and she dodged it as the line was retracted. _'Focus, Kallen,' _she thought to herself. "I won't let you down," she said out loud, not sure if Zero was still listening, but she felt it had to be said.

Powering down her main weapon, she got the Guren into a fighting stance. This was going to be hard, but she wasn't about to go back on what she'd just said. Zero had worked tirelessly leading the rebellion. Here, on the battlefield, was where she did her part.

* * *

Cecile watched suspiciously as the red knightmare frame across from her powered down its weapon. Wasting no time, she attacked again, but her adversary, leaped backwards to avoid her swing, then charged forwards, exploiting the opening she'd left and knocking the Lancelot to the ground. Instead of capitalising on this, her opponent instead put more distance between the two. Cecile could tell they were holding back, but thought nothing of it. She wasn't about to come quietly.

She made the Lancelot stand up, then fired all four grappling lines at her opponent. They dodged easily, but she was able to close in again, bringing the enemy within striking range of the Lancelot's sword. She lunged. Her opponent dodged but this time Cecile was ready for the counter-attack, blocking it with her energy shield, knocking the red frame off balance. She was about to go for the kill when a spray of gunfire forced her to back away. She turned to the source of the bullets and felt the red mist descend. Anyone could recognise Zero's personal knightmare frame.

She began to give chase. All she could think was how everything was his fault. This man- no, this faceless monster was to blame for everything. The war, the deaths, Suzaku, it was all his fault. The frame did not attack again, and simply stood there as the Lancelot charged. _'Suzaku, this one's for you.' _With that thought in mind, she readied the Lancelot's weapon as she neared. It never occurred to her that it would be a trap. Not until the Lancelot stopped moving, and the cockpit was flooded with red light as all power and momentum was lost.

* * *

Lelouch smirked behind his mask as he opened his cockpit, descending to the ground. The Gefjun Disturber had worked perfectly, disabling the Lancelot and leaving it at his mercy. He only needed to get the pilot outside and it was his.

Six knightmare frames surrounded the area within the confines of the Disturber, guns trained on the Lancelot. Lelouch activated his personal communicator and spoke into it, his amplified voice coming from the control tower.

"Pilot of the knightmare frame, 'Lancelot,'" he called, "this is a request for surrender. You are surrounded, and if you do not leave the frame you will be fired upon from all sides. You should find that basic functions are still active. You have one minute to comply."

Time seemed to stand still as he waited. For a moment, he thought that he would be forced to destroy the frame, but after what seemed like an age, the hatch opened, and a woman stepped out, descending to ground level via a retractable ladder that hung from the cockpit. Lelouch's eyes widened as he recognised Cecile, Suzaku's co-worker who had visited him and Nunnally, if only briefly. But that didn't matter. What mattered was that he could see her eyes, and that made acquiring the elusive knightmare frame that little bit easier.

He slowly walked towards her until they were within hearing distance of each other. With a victorious smile hidden behind his mask, Lelouch revealed one violet eye and, meeting Cecile's own hate filled gaze, released the power of the Geass.

"You will hand over the Lancelot to me," he spoke imperiously

Cecile's eyes glazed over and Lelouch smirked in triumph as she walked up to him and handed over a small, gold key.

_'Mission Accomplished.'_

_

* * *

_

Euphemia Li Britannia watched the events that transpired from the safety of the ship with growing shock and worry. She saw as the soldiers were mercilessly destroyed, as the knightmare pilots were killed and as Zero tricked and blackmailed Cecile into handing over the Lancelot. Underhanded and ruthless didn't even begin to describe them, and the Princess didn't think she could hate them any more than she already did.

What was worse was that the Order was far more formidable and cunning than anything the Empire had faced before

_'If only Lelouch were still with us,' _she thought despairingly, _'he'd know what to do._ _He'd just see the whole thing as a new challenge.' _She saddened even further. Even if Lelouch was still alive, there would be no way he'd help his family. He'd made it quite clear what he thought of them before he'd disappeared.

She looked back out of the window in time to see the Black Knights make a hasty retreat, Lancelot in hand. It only brought a small amount of satisfaction to Euphemia seeing that the frame didn't appear to be responding nearly as well to Zero as it had to Suzaku.

Euphemia was cut out of her thoughts by a one of her guards practically bowling into the room. "Princess Euphemia!" he practically shouted, before regaining himself and fell onto one knee, his head bowed.

"What is it?" she asked anxiously, worried by the urgent tone the guard had used. "Has something happened."

"We've just received a message from Count Lloyd." He looked nervous, like he'd rather be anywhere in the world rather than delivering the message. "He says that he needs to speak you as soon as possible, and that it's urgent."

"Tell him that I'll be happy to speak to him in person once the situation is dealt with." Euphemia paused. She just couldn't understand what had the guard so worked up. "Was there something else?" she tried prying.

"Your Highness," he began, clearly even more uncomfortable.

"Please," Euphemia pressed, "if it's important, tell me."

"Your Highness," the guard repeated himself, "It is in regards to your knight, Kururugi." This sentence alone caused the fear to well up in the young Princess. "He..." the guard gulped "Earlier today, he was attacked and assassinated at Ashford Academy. The killer was not caught, but..."

The rest of the speech was unheard by the Princess, who, upon hearing the word 'assassinated,' recoiled in horror, her hands cupping her mouth. Her throat constricted and tears began to gather in her eyes. It felt impossible to breathe, and blood was pounding in her ears as grief and denial both welled up inside her. _'This isn't happening,' _she cried in her head, _'he can't be dead.' _But as she looked at the man still kneeling before her, and seeing the sorrow and sympathy in his eyes she knew he was telling the truth.

The guard bowed his head again, "You have my deepest con-"

"Just leave," Euphemia choked out, and the guard was all too relieved to leave the distraught girl, hurriedly standing to attention before backing out of the door.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Euphemia caved in, collapsing to her knees, she broke into sobs as tears streamed down her cheeks, and for a long time, all she could do was weep.

* * *

**AN:** Another chapter done, and my longest one yet. This was a tough one to write, as I'm not as good at action scenes, but I think (or at least hope) I did okay. At any rate, I'm trying to show some versatility, especially as there are so many different sides to the Code Geass storyline. As always, thank you to all my readers, let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is always welcome, especially if you think one of the characters is unreasonably OOC (Remember, this diverges from the main storyline, so the characters will be developed differently.)

Ah well, enough of my rambling. I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter.


	4. Debrief

**Author's Notes:** I can't apologise enough for how late this has been, and I've got to thank Masterkeyes2 for keeping me inspired and on track. For fans of "Shades of Gray," that fic will probably be moving slower than this one, but it isn't abandoned.

* * *

**Chapter 4:** Debrief

It had been several hours since the Black Knights' attack, and the setting sun shone with a red light through the Palace windows. Euphemia, although she had somewhat calmed down, was faring no better than she had earlier, still in shock from the news of Suzaku's murder. Her sister, Cornelia, had an arm wrapped tightly around the younger princess as they sat in one of the Viceriene's lavishly decorated meeting rooms.

They sat in silence, waiting for their guest, Cornelia simply allowing her younger sister to try and gather herself. They did not have much longer to wait, as soon, a knock on the door was heard, and a voice called through, "Viceriene, Deputy-Viceriene, your guest has arrived."

The two sisters took a moment to stand and straighten themselves out, before Cornelia announced that they were ready. The ornate double doors opened to reveal Count Lloyd, dressed in his typical white lab coat and flanked by a single guard. He immediately bowed to the princesses before addressing Cornelia.

"I apologise for insisting on this meeting, your highness," he said smoothly, long used to dealing with Britannian nobility and royalty, "I can imagine this day has been rather trying. I know it has been for me."

Cornelia saw that Euphemia, despite appearing calm, had tensed up again, but she knew that her sister would see it as a slight against her character to be comforted in the company of others. That didn't stop her, however, from making a slight jab at the Count. "Indeed, today has not been easy," she said frowning, "and I would appreciate if you got to the point, rather than making today harder than it already is."

Lloyd simply gave that infuriating smile of his, and Cornelia inwardly fumed at his audacity. While she admitted that the Count was an amusing person, she didn't like how, only a few hours after he had lost his friend and co-worker, he was back to his usual self, grinning like an idiot and belying his status as a noble. It was just so... fake. Then again, that was the way things were in the britannian upper class. Only those who were closest to you were allowed to see beyond your carefully constructed mask. Especially in the royal family, where your own siblings were constantly out to discredit you and get one up over you, any open display of emotion was considered weakness.

Lloyd spoke, breaking Cornelia out of her inner rant. "I can see I'm far from welcome here, but I have important news. I dare say you'll find it most interesting." He paused, before asking, "Are we alone? It wouldn't do for others to hear this."

Cornelia, who was already at her limit, had to try not to strangle him. "Yes," she answered, "now please get to the point or I will have you removed from this place."

Very well," Lloyd said, still smiling despite the glare directed his way, "While I was at the Ashford academy, I met a rather interesting young man and I believe you two might know of him. He seemed friendly enough, but now I'm wondering if that was a façade, and I have reason to believe that he was the one who killed Kururugi."

Euphemia's eyes widened, and before Cornelia could stop her, she blurted out, "Who was he? Did you catch him."

"No," Lloyd shook his head, "I'm afraid he disappeared before I could apprehend him. As to your first question," he paused, and his smile widened, and Cornelia suspected that he enjoyed having the two princesses in suspense, "he said that his name was Lelouch Lamperouge."

Euphemia let out a cry, and even Cornelia gasped in shock before she was able to properly school her features. "I hope for your sake," she ground out, "that you understand the seriousness of this allegation. This had better not be some kind of joke."

"Of course, Your Highness," Lloyd replied, not phased in the slightest, "I assure you, I would not dream of fabricating something such as this."

_'I doubt it,' _Cornelia thought, inwardly rolling her eyes. "You understand what this could mean for the royal family, I take it. One of our own siding with the terrorists would bring our public support to an all time low. I don't know what Zero's planning, but the public believe him to be a symbol of equality, and he will only be strengthened if he has the backing of a royal family member, despite their background." She made a point to stare Lloyd in the eyes. "Let me make this clear: This cannot get out. If what has been discussed here leaves this room, I could have you shot so easily it won't even be funny."

"I understand completely," Lloyd said, uncharacteristically sombre. He bowed before speaking again. "That is all I wished to speak of. I only wish to see my friend brought to justice."

"We'll see what we can do," Cornelia assured him, "but if we really are dealing with Lelouch, it won't be easy. He's been under the radar for so long, and I don't doubt that he's already preparing to disappear again. You are dismissed."

Lloyd bowed once again before turning to leave the room. Once the doors to the meeting room closed behind him closed, leaving the sisters on their own, Cornelia let out a breath and fell backwards onto the couch. Her sister joined her, a shell shocked look on her face. "Cornelia," she asked uncertainly, "you don't think..." she swallowed, and fresh tears appeared in her eyes, "you don't think he did it, do you?"

Cornelia closed her eyes, thinking carefully. For a second, Euphemia thought that she hadn't heard her, and was about to ask again when she finally spoke. "No," Cornelia replied, "I don't think he did it. We don't even know that he's got anything to do with it."

"What do you mean?" Euphemia asked worriedly.

"I admit that it's suspicious," Cornelia began, "but I doubt he just showed up that day. Think about it, he's at the Ashford academy, and that family was always loyal to Marianne. It's not unreasonable to assume that he's been laying low with them all this time."

"I'm glad," Euphemia sighed, "It's good that he's been able to make a way for himself. Maybe we could check up on him."

"Not so fast," Cornelia warned, "remember, he still needs to be investigated before we can be sure. This is Lelouch, after all. This could just be a front."

"Still," Euphemia mused, "it would be nice to see him and Nunally again, ne? You've always said how you wanted to find out what happened to them."

"Euphemia," Cornelia said sternly, frowning, "we still don't know whether or not he's involved somehow. Just because it's unlikely that he killed your knight, if we get ahead of ourselves there is a very real danger of either of us getting captured or killed." Cornelia placed her hands on her sister's shoulders and locked eyes with her. "Euphie, whatever you do, don't go after him on your own. It's clear that there are people who at least sympathise with the Black Knights at the academy, and if they find out about Lelouch, then it will simply put him in danger."

Euphemia's face fell once again. "Okay," she said despondently, "but don't you want to see him and Nunally again?"

"Weren't you even listening?" Cornelia cried in exasperation, "interfering now won't do any of us any good." She scowled, but Euphemia simply held her gaze as they sat in silence. "What?" Cornelia asked, when she realised that her sister wasn't going to reply.

"You didn't answer my question," Euphemia replied indignantly, and Cornelia was reminded so much of herself for a moment.

Cornelia gritted her teeth, unnerving her sister. She was instantly apologetic, "I'm sorry," she said more calmly, and she had to admit that Euphemia had hit a nerve. "I do miss him, not to mention Nunally, but we can't let our emotions get the better of us, for our or his sakes." Euphemia still looked unsure. "Euphemia," Cornelia warned, "don't do anything stupid." Her shoulders slumped, and Euphemia could only just hear her as she choked out, "Please."

"O-okay," Euphemia stuttered, and Cornelia sighed, recognising the lie from her sister and knowing that she could do nothing to help change her mind. The question, in her mind, was whether calling her sister on her lie would discourage her, or only drive them apart.

_'Further apart,' _she corrected herself, wondering why her sister even considered so blatantly lying to her. Finally she spoke up. "I don't believe you," she said softly, "but I don't blame you." _'After all,'_ she thought, _'We're bound to cross paths sooner or later.'_ "Just say safe."

* * *

While this was going on, Kallen was waiting nervously outside one of the Black Knight's own meeting rooms. Zero was currently debriefing the rest of the inner circle, and had told her to wait for him. She had no doubt what this was about. Her independent actions had plagued her mind since the disastrous celebration earlier that day, only briefly pushed back by the rush of battle. Now they had returned full force, and Zero had already made it clear that he wasn't pleased.

_'I'm going to kill Diethard,'_ she swore in her head. True, she probably wouldn't actually do it, not after the reception her last assassination had been met with by their leader, but still, there were very few people she hated more at the moment. She had always prided herself in being one of Zero's most loyal and trusted associates, and she could be on the verge of losing that because of what the Britannian had told her to do.

She remembered a conversation she'd had with C.C once about their mysterious leader. Kallen couldn't help but scowl at the memory. That had been an unmitigated disaster. Conversations with the enigmatic girl were always tiresome; she'd even seen Zero nearly lose his cool with the strange girl.

The memory in question was admittedly not one of Kallen's best moments. C.C. Had stowed away in one of the Order's cars while she and Tamaki had been out running errands, the knights being somewhat understaffed at that point in time. Tamaki, being somewhat nosey when it came to Zero's acquaintance, mainly because it was thought that she was the only person who knew their leader's true identity, made the mistake of assuming that C.C and Zero were lovers. _That_ had resulted in him being forcefully ejected from the moving vehicle, which he had survived, but had spent several days in their base's infirmary, and a further week in an arm cast and neck bracer.

Of course C.C, being C.C, had refused to leave it at that, repeatedly implying that it was Kallen who was in love with Zero. The combined shock, distraction and embarrassment had caused the young driver to miss several turnings, and bring the car to a screeching halt. Needless to say, C.C had been quick to point out the flaws in her driving skills.

Once they had got going again, C.C had gone back to her previous pastime of trying to pry into a now flustered Kallen's feelings for her leader. After putting up with as much as she could, Kallen, whose face by that time had turned a similar colour to her hair, had snapped at C.C, and was in the process of telling her that she had, "nothing but the truest, untainted respect for Zero," when she'd realised too late that she'd taken her eyes off the road for a second too long.

How they'd managed to avoid arrest for the crash was anyone's guess, and although the two girls had survived relatively unscathed due to an inordinate amount of safety measures installed in the car, losing the car, coupled with having to go back and get and pick up Tamaki from where C.C had dumped him, had caused Kallen to be extremely late with her errands. Zero had not been happy with any of the three, but Kallen, who didn't exactly have a healthy relationship with C.C in the first place, still blamed her misfortune on the green haired girl.

While Kallen had dismissed, or at least tried to dismiss, C.C's implications as nonsense, one utterance hit the young pilot dead on.

_'He won't involve the women who are truly important to him.'_

Looking back, Kallen wondered, _'Just what am I to Zero? Does he really value me, or am I just a pawn to him in this whole game?' _She thought on this, but found that it was impossible to deduce. On one hand, he clearly didn't trust her enough to reveal himself to her, but conversely, it could just be that he didn't want her to be caught up in what C.C made out to be a game which was far more complicated than the current war.

She was shaken out of her thoughts as the door to the meeting room slid open with a pneumatic hissing sound, revealing Ougi Kaname, Kallen's long time ally and Zero's second in command. The rest of Zero's advisors and commanders stood behind him, including Toudou, Raksharta and Diethard. Zero was still in the room, seated almost lazily on one of the couches.

"Zero wants to see you now," Ougi informed her, and stepped aside, offering her some words of encouragement as she passed. "Don't worry," he assured her, "You've got my backing, and he doesn't seem to mad at you. Diethard probably has it worse, Zero hasn't let him get a word in edgewise for the entire meeting once he found out what happened."

At this, the man in question had the good grace to look dejected. Zero definitely wasn't someone anyone wanted to cross, and Kallen almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

* * *

Lelouch watched Kallen from behind his mask as she entered, and motioned for her to sit opposite him. She immediately obeyed. Once the others had left, leaving the two on their own, Lelouch addressed them. "Kozuki Kallen," he began, watching as she flinched at the sound of her full name. "I am incredibly disappointed in you." His tone was even. "I would never expect such insubordinate behaviour from you."

It was obvious what he was talking about, but Kallen obviously felt the need to interrupt. "With all due respect, Diethard-"

"I already know what Ried did, I am here to talk about your actions," Lelouch cut her off, "Now tell me, why did you kill Kururugi?" It felt strange calling his deceased friend by his last name, but his mask hid the grimace at the unpleasant taste it left in his mouth.

"Because it clearly benefited our Order," Kallen snapped off immediately in response, "He would have been too hard to defeat in battle, and was causing us serious problems."

"So you and Ried decided to assassinate him?" Lelouch asked.

"It was his idea," Kallen said quickly, "but I admit, I thought it was a good one." She bowed her head, "I apologise."

Lelouch remained silent, his mask hiding his thoughtful expression. Lelouch prided himself at being able to read people, and from what he could tell, Kallen wasn't lying. She seemed genuinely sorry, but something wasn't quite right. "What are you apologising for?" he asked slowly.

Kallen looked confused and stunned for a second before answering, "For killing him, what else?"

"Oh," Lelouch asked, "are you sure?" Seeing his subordinate's confusion on her face he elaborated, "Are you sorry because he was your friend? Maybe sorry because the method used was underhanded and immoral?"

"No..." Kallen said quietly. "No," she repeated more firmly, "yes, Suzaku was my friend, but he stood in the way of my dream. While friends are important to me, I won't let them hold me back." She paused, and an almost feral gleam was in her eyes as she next spoke, "As for the method, you become numb to it after a while."

Lelouch's eye's widened in shock at this declaration. _'This is unexpected,' _he thought, and out loud he asked, "So you've done this before?"

Kallen took a deep breath, "Never to a friend," she said, "but yeah, I have."

_'That explains the pocket knife and her acting skills,' _he realised. "So before your resistance joined the Black Knights, you were an assassin, as well as a pilot. Tell me, would you do the same thing again?" he asked.

"In a second," Kallen replied determinedly.

Lelouch scowled. "Then you have learned nothing from this experience," he said sharply. Kallen looked like she was about to protest, but he continued, "You, Kozuki Kallen, are a knight, my knight." He saw the girl in front of him swell with pride at the statement, in spite of the situation. "You are our best pilot, and part of my own guard f honour, but your actions reflect badly upon yourself."

"How?" Kallen asked hotly, forgetting herself for a second, "Not only did we defeat our strongest enemy to date without any casualties, but now we have the Lancelot."

"A leader cannot tell his subordinates the entirety of their plans, even to one as highly placed as yourself. Your actions, while seemingly beneficial, could have had effects on the bigger picture without you realising. Not only will our public oppinion change dramatically at this, but there is dissent in the ranks. Luckily for all of us, I was able to defuse the worst of this for now, but further attacks like this will only cause more problems for the order." He paused, waiting to play his trump card. "Let's take an extreme case," he said slowly, "You don't know what my face looks like. Could you simply kill without discrimination, knowing that any one of the people who die at your hands could have the same face as the one under this mask?"

Kallen flinched and bowed her head, and Lelouch knew that he had made his point. "Kallen," he said, more softly this time, "I value you above so many of the Knights here, but I can't allow you to act without knowing what's happening. Doing so could jeopardise everything we've strived for, and even get you and your friends killed."

"I understand," she said, raising her head proudly, "from now on, I will not act so rashly without your agreement."

"Good," Lelouch said, smiling under the mask. "I have another task for you, and I need you to show me that you can do this professionally and without slipping up. This will also help deal with some of the damage caused by your previous actions."

"I won't let you down," Kallen said, clenching her fist.

"I would expect nothing less," Lelouch replied. "Now, you attend the Ashford academy, correct?"

"I do," Kallen answered, clearly unsure where this was going.

"You see, although you are free of suspicion, it is highly likely that one of your classmates will not be so lucky. He used to be a part of Britannian high society with close ties to the royal family, but his family was disgraced several years ago, and he has been hidden by the Ashford family ever since. Unfortunately, recent events threaten to thrust him into the spotlight once again, and he is in danger of persecution."

"Excuse me," Kallen interrupted, "but what does this have to do with us?"

"He is somewhat close to both myself and my companion," Lelouch answered.

"C.C?" Kallen took a hesitant guess.

"Correct," Lelouch confirmed, "he would also be an asset. With some training he could probably pilot a knightmare frame, but his real prowess lies in his head. He has an excellent strategic mind, and would likely make a good advisor, or even a field commander once properly trained."

"So you want me to bring him in?" Kallen asked, "That way, we'll be able to both help him, and use his skills for our cause. So who is it."

Lelouch reached into a pocket inside his cloak, and pulled out a photo and showed it to her, watching as Kallen's eyes widened in recognition.

She had no idea that she was looking at the photo of the very man she was talking to.

* * *

**AN:** Wow, that was really wordy. Sorry if that was boring, especially after such a long wait, but this needed to be done. Stuff happens next chapter, although there won't be much action for a bit. I hope Cornelia ad Euphie weren't too OOC. I know that Euphemia seems somewhat bipolar, but at the moment she's torn between grieving for Suzaku and wanting to see her brother. I've also gotten several reviews saying that Euphemia already suspected Lelouch of being Zero. I found that somewhat unrealistic in the anime, but to each their own.

I hope you've enjoyed the story so far, and I'm sorry again for the wait. Special thanks to both Masterkeyes2 and Sadistic Lunatic for helping me with ideas.

The memory about the car crash is a reference to one of the sound episodes. I Thought I just had to incorporate it somehow. Thanks again to Masterkeyes2 for showing me this.

Now I need to go work on "Shades of Gray." Laters.


End file.
